Sweet Dreams
by Icis
Summary: A new face enters Hogwarts and brings up some of the brighter moments of a dark professor's past


Author's Note-  
  
I've tried fanficing before, but that was quite awhile ago, so, please forgive my spelling problems. I'm sure that I screwed a number of things up. Please just let me know and I'll fix them as soon as possible-I'm in need of a Hogwarts dictionary. I don't own the books and my friends who do weren't around when I decided to start this little project. Secondly, Fai's name is pronounced "Fay Day-mon". I've used her as a character before and people keep trying to make her name "Demon". Just to start things out on the right foot I thought I better clear that up. Thank you, and happy reading! Please review! I need to know if I should keep posting!  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Hogwarts or any of the original Harry Potter characters. However, I do own Fai Daemon and all related characters.  
  
She walked into the Great Hall and began identifying the banners that adorned the four main tables. Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin, she had heard the house names far too many times echoing throughout her dreams. They haunted her because she knew she would be welcomed at only one of the tables. Automatically, she placed herself at a seat decorated by green and silver. She was fair complexioned, and slight, wearing non-descript robes of a light charcoal. Her dark hair was cropped to shoulder-length, and it framed a face that could be five or fifty. She glanced at the ceiling and noticed that a light drizzle was beginning to fall just as the doors opened to admit several robed figures. She recognized them immediately-these were the professors she'd been introduced to seven summers before. There were two whom she couldn't quite place, but all the rest seemed at least vaguely familiar. Then, brining up the end of the line entered Dumbledore, who was speaking to a rather distressed Hagrid. "I went inta Hogsmead, like ya sed, but she wernt there! Da shopkeep sed she'd gone and left! I knew I was half an hour late cuz of that wulf but." "Never mind, I'm sure she'll pop up somewhere." Dumbledore said dismissively. It's not like they were." "Albus, I believe she found her way here on her own." Professor McGongall interrupted, gesturing over at the Slytherin table. "Fai! There you are! Why didn't you wait for Hagrid as we'd planned?" His tone was distracted, as if he was there in body, but not in mind. "I thought I could beat the rain." She turned her gaze to the groundskeeper and offered a weak smile. "I'm sorry Hagrid. I thought I would meet you along the way." "'S alright miss, I's jus glad yer okay." He glanced at Dumbledore who was mumbling to himself. "'bout that wulf sir." "Yes, go and take care of it. Will you join us later?" "No, I won't be done til late. Missy," he said glancing back at Fai. "You commin' for tea tommora?" "I wouldn't miss it for the world." She answered softly. "See ya then!" He bowed slightly to the other professors then left the hall, the huge doors shutting behind him. "Now," Dumbledore said, noticeably recovering. "As you know, this is Fair Daemon. Fai, this is Minerva McGongall, and." He gestured and went on down the line. Fair nodded at each in turn while taking mental notes. She stopped briefly when she reached Severus Snape, then quickly moved on. *So,* she thought. *I'm not the only "traitor" here* She could feel Snape's gaze linger on her and she suddenly realized where she was still sitting. She stood up quickly and pulled her dark green backpack from beneath the table, acting almost as if she had been stung. "Have you eaten dear?" Dumbledore asked, reverting to his half-dazed state. "No, sir." "None of that! It's Albus, if I can't cure Hagrid of formality, I'm not even going to let you start." The others had already begun to seat themselves and the Headmaster motioned for Fai to follow suit. For the summer the chairs at the faculty table had been resituated on both sides of the table, and she found herself in a seat next to Dumbledore, and directly across from Severus Snape.  
  
.. Despite the uncomfortable atmosphere Fair found herself enjoying dinner. McGongall and Sprout where having a rather spirited discussion about the practical application of astrology, while the other teachers talked about student pranks and Quiditch.  
  
She wanted to say something to Snape. There were so many questions she'd waited a lifetime to get answered. There were so many things only he could tell her, but she felt that this wasn't the place. Fai knew that his past was a touchy subject, and she was also fully aware of his temper. The questions would have to wait.  
  
Severus was speechless. She wasn't what he had pictured. This small, dark haired pixie was nothing like her father. He had been tall, with light hair and flashing blue eyes, but she.she was everything small and delicate. She had eyes of the darkest chocolate and a certain manner that spoke volumes of growing up too fast and knowing too much. She had recognized his name immediately, but how much did she really know? How many of his secrets were now at risk? If everything Albus had said was true, why had she been sitting at the Slytherin table? "Well your end of the table is quite chatty tonight." Minerva quipped, glancing down at Dubledore and Snape. "Our new ward is bound to think we're all a bunch of antisocial old fogies!" "Sorry, I was just thinking.there's so much to be taken care of." Dubledore trailed off staring down at his plate. He looked noticeably tired and distracted. "No, it's fine, I've had a long day. In fact, Albus, if you'd just tell me where I'm to stay I'll head off to bed." Fai pushed back from the table and slung her backpack over one shoulder. "Yes dear, it's just down the hall and then." He suddenly looked up at Snape. "Severus, you know where her chambers are, would you mind taking her?" "Yes, I mean no," He stuttered and then regained his composure. "It would be my pleasure." Fai smiled, said good night and then followed him out of the hall. The door shut itself, and as it clicked a hundred thoughts began to race through both of their minds. "When did you.?" "Did he send you.?" "Excuse me, what were you saying?" Fai had spoken first, but she was more interested in what Snape had started to ask. "Did he send you here? To spy on me?" The impact was so great that Fai stopped in mid-step. "Did who send me here?" She replied sharply. "Did my uncle send me here? Is that what you're asking? You of all people should know that "uncle Tom" and I aren't on the best of terms. Currently he's hired someone to kidnap me. That's why I'm here! For some reason he's convinced that its time for a bloody family reunion of some sort!" Snape was startled by her ability to turn ice cold so quickly. Her hands were shaking, but she held her gaze steady and he could see the pain that had generated such an outburst. "I'm sorry Miss Daemon, but you, of all people, know that I had to ask." She gave him one last glare and then lost all her steam. She did understand why he had asked, but it just proved to be one more bitter reminder that she wasn't suppose to be here. She fell back into step behind him as they made their way down the hallway. She didn't know if she should or not, but she had to ask, she couldn't wait any longer. "Did you know him well?" Snape stopped mentally, caught off guard by her now soft tone. "I knew him as well as anyone, I suppose." He glanced down and saw the immediate change in her face. He could tell that she needed to hear everything as much as he needed to say it. "I was young. He talked with me when he got the chance, he said he didn't want me to make the same mistakes, he said he couldn't change the past, but he hoped that he wouldn't regret the future, should he live to see it." Snape shook his head and tried to get rid of a thought that had lingered in the back of his mind for years now. "He had nothing.but in a way, in the end, he had everything." Fai wanted to stop herself from asking any more, from saying something she might regret, but she kept on. "I saw him that day, it was at the brook where we always met. He hugged me for so long, I was only five, but I remember it so clearly, so crystal clear. He gave me a bag, and asked me to wait for him. He said he'd be right back. I didn't know it at the time, but he was going to break off things with his brother. He was going to tell Tom that he couldn't do it anymore. I waited, but he never came back." A tear trickled down her face and they stopped once again. Snape dug in his pockets and handed her a black handkerchief. He couldn't be his normal cold self around her; after all, it had been Benjamin Riddle who had convinced him that there was more to life than domination. But he couldn't allow himself to seem weak, this could still be a trap. "Thanks, I'm sorry for." "It's quite alright, now, for your rooms." She followed him once again, his black robes billowing as he led her down a staircase and into another hall. *He was hurt too* she realized. *He keeps running so it won't catch up. Not caring about anything so he won't care about himself.* They stopped for the final time in front of a green door carved with a leaf pattern and detailed in gilt. "Well, here we are, I believe your password is 'Spinach'". Evidently he was right because the door clicked. "If you need anything, mine's the next door down." "Breakfast? I don't think I can find my way back to the Great Hall without a map." She looked helpless and drained, for a moment he almost felt like she shouldn't be left alone. "Is nine alright? I'm not an early riser in the summer." "That's fine, I need the extra rest." He turned and went down to another green door, this one with silver detailing and disappeared. She opened the door to her new chambers and, without even bothering to call for lights, collapsed in a crumpled heap on the couch. 


End file.
